


Cousins

by Whisperingwater



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015), Superman - All Media Types
Genre: Clark and Kara bonding, Clark is an Intern at Daily Planet, Clark meets Kara for the first time, Cousins, Family Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Friendship, Kara lands on Earth, Karamel happens in the future, Kelex needs a break, Minor Clark Kent/Diana Prince, Minor Kara Danvers/Mon-El, Protective Clark Kent, The Kents are the best
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-06-03
Packaged: 2019-05-14 10:34:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,983
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14767947
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whisperingwater/pseuds/Whisperingwater
Summary: Juggling between his superhero persona and an internship at The Daily Planet, Clark Kent has too much on his plate. But when a mysterious pod crashes, he's met with a surprise – a cousin.Kara Zor-El of Krypton was sent to protect her baby cousin Kal-El. But when she meets Clark Kent, she knows the roles are now reversed.Follow Clark and Kara as they bond and become friends before they can be cousins.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I always wanted to write a story based on how Clark and Kara met on Earth! Hope you like reading this.

 

Clark Kent stood leaning against a wall in a now empty corridor, looking at the city from the small windows lined against the opposite wall.

He had landed a six-week-long media journalism internship at The Daily Planet few months after graduating from Metropolis University. Things hadn’t been easy before that. He knew the only reason Perry White offered him the job was because he managed to get an interview of _The_ Bruce Wayne without affiliation to any newspapers or magazines. It was Cat Grant who had seen him ride his bike in full speed and get a word or two out of Mr. Wayne, who was on his way to Gotham after a charity event hosted by his company here at Metropolis. Cat Grant, gossip columnist extraordinaire, couldn’t help but wonder how this kid, freshly out of college had interviewed Bruce Wayne. It took her another week to find his blog, and she had to pull a lot of strings to find where he lived. 

Cat had found Clark living in a studio apartment at the Lower East Side. A friend was visiting him that day. He had introduced himself as James Olsen, a photographer. Jimmy—what she preferred calling him—had been with Clark when he interviewed Bruce Wayne and taken a picture of him, albeit with his permission, but Cat was surprised how these rookies had managed to pull off this whole thing.

They were talented, she would give them that. 

So after meeting with these two young men, she headed straight to the office to get printouts of Clark Kent’s articles along with Jimmy James’ photographs. Perry White had raised a single eyebrow when she put the file on his desk.

“No,” he had said.

“They are good, trust me on this one, Perry." 

“They are amateurs, Cat. And do they have any experience with journalism? Any at all?”

Cat shrugged. “When was the last time one of your people got an interview with Bruce Wayne minutes before he boarded his damn helicopter to fly away into oblivion?!" 

Perry White let out a loud sigh. “Three months ago, at his office; why?”

“ _Three_ months ago?! You gotta be kidding me, boss!” Cat plopped on his desk and ran a hand through her long blonde hair. At the age of thirty-one, she looked just as young as the heartthrob Clark Kent she had just met. “And did that interview happen because you pulled some strings _because_ Bruce freaking Wayne _owns_ The Daily Planet?”

“Okay, fine. Yes, I pulled some strings, but the man is busy. You can’t just go ask him for an interview and get one.”

“I have a guy who did _exactly_ that!” Cat jumped from the desk and faced Perry White, her eyes widening in excitement.

Her boss gave her a look and sat back in his chair. “Name. Age. Qualification. And how do _you_ know him?”

“Clark Kent. 22. He said he skipped a grade. And he just graduated from Metropolis Uni with Journalism and Communication honors. I saw him ride his bike from where the charity event had ended, right to where Wayne’s helicopter stood and get an interview out of this man. Call Wayne, he would remember the incident. And I know Kent because I’ve been tracking him down for a while.”

“Okay, so you have been _stalking_ this kid who got a sentence or two out of Mr. Wayne? Good for you.”

Cat marched straight to where her boss sat and opened the file that she placed right in front of him. “Read it.”

Perry White couldn’t help but sigh again. He took the file and opened it knowing Cat wasn’t going to leave till he read whatever she had brought him. Cat went to lean against a wall and waited for her boss to realize just what she had found.

Her boss looked bored as he started reading the article, only for him to raise a brow and continue it. She saw that he was indeed surprised by Clark’s capabilities. That was one helluva interview he had managed to get from Bruce Wayne. It easily looked like something a senior reporter would have penned down, one with years of experience.

When Perry White had finished reading the article, he put the file down and looked at her quietly.

“So?” Cat prompted.

“Get this kid and his sidekick to my office tomorrow. We can offer them an internship for the time being. I’m putting you in charge of both of them, unless you want to take Olsen alone and leave Kent to Lane.”

Cat frowned at the man at the mention of Lois Lane’s name. “My find. _I_ get to be in charge! And Lane isn’t coming anywhere near him, and if she does, I’m quitting and taking Kent along with me!" 

“Is that a threat?” Perry White asked with a chuckle.

“You bet it is!” Cat snatched the file off his desk and left the room with a twirl of her expensive red coat.

And that was, to put in few words, the way Clark had landed the internship.

But no one had told him just how much work he would be doing here. Cat usually assigned him to go out and find news. She would accompany him and give him some value tips and feedback on his work. Perry White was overall impressed and happy with his work. But there were few people at his workplace who would rather not have him here. Lois Lane just happened to be one of them.

“Smallville!” he heard a voice behind him just as he was about to walk back to the office. And then he barely felt a stack of files hit his head. It took less than two seconds to realize that he had to react to this in a way a human would. “Ow!”

“Stop slacking! We don’t pay you to daydream!” Lane yelled as she narrowed her eyes at him. 

“I wasn’t slacking!”

“Oh yeah, what were you doing then? Dreaming that a Princess would come riding her Ferrari and sweep you right off your feet?!”

Clark rolled his eyes at her but refrained from saying something that would land him in trouble.

“Hey Lane!” Clark turned towards the voice he heard behind him, even though he had already felt the presence lingering around for longer. “Stop bullying my intern and stay the f*ck in your lane!” Cat glared at her female coworker, resentment dripping in the air surrounding him. “Don’t forget that I have audiovisual proof of you and your boyfriend harassing Clark at the cafeteria by dumping mashed potatoes on his shirt!”

Lane stiffed at that. The CCTV cameras at the cafeteria weren’t working, then how did Cat Grant have video of what she did?

“Come along, Clark, we got work to do.” She tugged at his arm and dragged him to the elevator. Clark had failed to notice that she was carrying his satchel along with her own handbag as she entered the elevator after him. “Seriously! You let her bully you once again?!”

Clark lowered his gaze. “I really didn’t want her to go file a complain against me, Cat. And I’m not feeling well, so I took a little break and Lane caught me just then.” 

“Well, if you want to take a break, get out of the office and go get some caffeine next time. I swear, one day I’ll pull all her hair out!”

Cat and Clark stepped out and headed out of the building. Cat had gotten some lead she wanted to check and knowing Clark was better at getting into places and getting the work done, she decided to let him tag along. But as she stood waiting for a taxi, Clark had turned when he heard something. A distinct sound… in the sky. As if something had entered the atmosphere. Just as he did that, he crashed into someone, and that someone had dropped whatever they were carrying. 

“I’m so sorry!” Clark apologized as he got down on one knee to pick up the papers scattered around him. 

He only looked up when a soulful, feminine voice said, “It’s alright.” That accent was something he couldn’t miss. He looked up to see a breathtaking goddess in front of him. His jaw dropped when she pushed her dark brown hair out of her face and looked at the sky, as if hearing something too.

Clark stood up and handed over her papers. “I’m really sorry, I wasn’t watching where—”

“It’s okay,” the young woman said with a heartbreaking smile. “No harm done.”

Just as she was about to walk away, he called, “Have a great rest of the day, Diana.” And right there, Clark wanted the ground to open and swallow him. He had seen the name on the papers that had fallen down. _Diana Prince._ She looked around his age, possibly a recent graduate looking for a job. And he really really hoped that was her name and not just some random name on the papers.

The gorgeous woman turned around, she was neither angry nor happy, but a strange smile played on her face as her eyes fell on the ID he had around his neck. “You have a great day, too, Mr. Kent.” With a small yet graceful wave she walked away.

Clark stood waving at her stupidly, right till he heard someone clear their throat. He looked at Cat with a sheepish smile.

“No taxis here. Just got off a call, my lead wants to meet me at a café nearby, he insists I come alone,” Cat said as she started walking. “And since you aren’t feeling well, I should let you go for the day." 

“Really?” Clark asked, his eyes lighting up. Then he feigned disappointed when Cat shook her head.

“Yeah. Go. Make sure to bring along an energy drink or two, we have lot of work to do tomorrow.”

“Right. See you tomorrow, boss!” Clark gave her a salute and was on his way. Miss Prince couldn’t have gone a long way; he could still catch up with her. Maybe ask her out… But a sharp pain in his head made him bend down, as he clutched his head and let out a small moan. Something had crashed somewhere. And his instincts told him to check it out. Without thinking twice, he ran towards a dark alley and flew straight home where he dumped his satchel and changed out of his clothes and flew towards where he had heard the loud thud.

His red cape fluttered as he flew over a field where a small spaceship had landed. Clark’s eyes widened as he realized that the pod looked shockingly similar to the one he had landed in.

He flew towards it and saw a small figure through the glass windows. Ripping the door open, he saw a young, blonde girl sitting inside. She looked at him in shock, her eyes widening as she stared at him—or at his chest, he had noticed. His eyes fell on the crest that was woven on the white top she wore.

“Kara?” he asked in recognition. Years of going through every document relating to his birthplace at the Fortress of Solitude had paid off. This girl looked like the cousin he had lost when Krypton fell. 

“Wh—who are you?” she managed a whisper, fear creeping in as she realized she had crashed somewhere and a man wearing the crest of El stood staring at her. And before she knew it, she collapsed in her pod out of exhaustion.

“Damnit!” Clark yelled as he lifted her out of the pod. She was very warm, possibly running a fever and he had to take her somewhere cold, someplace she would find familiar when she woke up. So he removed the cape he wore and wrapped it around her limp body and lifted her in his arms and flew straight to the Fortress.

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "This is Kryptonian," she said, running her fingers over the crest.
> 
> "It's a command key. It led me to this place. This Fortress was buried under the ice. It was left here by our ancestors in case we… crash-landed on this planet and needed to learn about our home. I'm Clark Kent. You must be familiar with Kal-El?"
> 
> "Kal-El is my baby cousin! I was sent here to protect him. Will you help me find him, Clark Kent? He's too little, and he could be anywhere on this planet!"
> 
> Clark scratched his head. "Umm… Kara, I am Kal-El."
> 
> Kara looked at him as if he were stupid and for a minute, Clark wondered if he was indeed stupid just blurting out he's the baby cousin Kara was looking for when he was a giant compared to the baby she had known.

Kara Zor-El woke up with an excruciating headache. She moaned in pain and jumped when she saw a droid fly towards her as she lay on a levitating bed of sorts.

"Kara Zor-El," the droid spoke. "Welcome to the Fortress of Solitude. I am Kelex. I will be at your service."

"Where am I?" Kara asked, getting out of the bed and looking around.

"You are at the Fortress of Solitude."

Kara shook her head. "No,  _where_  am I?"

"You are at the Fortress of Solitude," the droid repeated.

Letting out a loud sigh, Kara gave up. Just then she heard a voice from the doorway say, " _Planet Earth._ " The man who had opened her pod walked in. "You are on Earth. It's a planet in the Solar System of Milky Way, a galaxy located in the Laniakea Supercluster. Light years away from your planet, Krypton in Eioneus Nebula."

"You speak of Krypton as if you are not familiar with it," Kara stated. "Yet you wear the crest of the house of El."

"When I landed on this planet in a pod similar to yours, all I came with was a red blanket wrapped around me. It had this crest," he said, pointing towards his chest. "And also this…" He pulled out the necklace he wore and held out the command key for Kara to take.

"This is Kryptonian," she said, running her fingers over the crest.

"It's a command key. It led me to this place. This Fortress was buried under the ice. It was left here by our ancestors in case we… crash-landed on this planet and needed to learn about our home. I'm Clark Kent. You must be familiar with Kal-El?"

"Kal-El is my baby cousin! I was sent here to protect him. Will you help me find him, Clark Kent? He's too little, and he could be anywhere on this planet!"

Clark scratched his head. "Umm… Kara, I  _am_  Kal-El."

Kara looked at him as if he were stupid and for a minute, Clark wondered if he was indeed stupid just blurting out he's the baby cousin Kara was looking for when he was a giant compared to the baby she had known.

"Okay, I know this sounds weird, but I brought your pod here and Kelex ran some tests on it and we know why you look so young. But I know you aren't able to believe me, so you need to see something. I'm not going to harm you, you have my word." Clark gestured for Kara to follow him. She seemed reluctant, but she needed answers.

He led her through a long corridor and opened a door. She followed him in to see the room was empty. There was a circular podium in the middle of the room and in the corner was a panel. She saw Clark use his command key on the wall and suddenly the entire room lit up with a pale blue glow and in the middle of the podium stood a man she had seen just few hours before she had left Krypton.

Kara's eyes widened as she moved towards the blue figure and she tried to touch his hand, but her hand went right through him. "Uncle Jor?"

"Hello Kara," Jor-El said, his eyes softening. Then he looked at Clark and greeted, "Kal-El, welcome back."

"How? What?" Kara turned to face Clark. "Is he real?"

Clark shook his head and came to stand besides her. "My command key activated this room. It's an interactive artificial intelligence made solely out of the memories my father preserved so it could be of use to me if I ever came looking for answers."

Kara's eyes widened at that. "You really are Kal…" She reached out to touch his cheek. He had to go down on both his knees. Kara touched his face and started to cry, so Clark pulled her into his arms for a hug.

"I'm sorry, but you will find your answers here too," he said as he looked up at his father's hologram. "What can you tell us about the Phantom Zone?"

"The Phantom Zone is a prison dimension that I discovered. It was used by the Kryptonian Council as a humane prison. It's a barren wasteland. People trapped in the zone can never age or die. There is no escape unless it is disrupted by an external force."

"Kara, Kelex found that your pod was trapped in the Phantom Zone for years."

"I left as soon as your pod left, Kal. You were just a baby. But now you—how old  _are_  you?"

"I'm twenty-two years old. And if I'm right, you were trapped in the Phantom Zone for all those years and didn't age a day."

"Kara," Jor-El's hologram spoke. "You appear to be well. Things are not how they used to be. Kal-El is an adult and it is time for him to take care of you and protect you. I pray to Rao that you find a home in this planet. May Rao be with you."

The hologram disappeared and once again they were left in silence till Clark said, "Guess my dad was a big Star Wars nerd!" He laughed at his own joke and only stopped when he saw Kara wasn't laughing or even smiling.

"Are there wars going on in the stars?" she asked.

Clark shook his head. "No. Sorry, it was a movie reference. You can watch it once we get home."

"What is a movie?" Kara asked following Clark out of the room.

"Motion picture. You'll find out soon."

"This is not your home?" Kara said, looking around the place.

"Nope. I don't live here. I live in Metropolis. Let me give you a tour of this place before we head out."

Kara followed him quietly around the Fortress as he showed her all the rooms and his final stop was the control room where Kelex was waiting for them. Clark then told Kelex to give full access of the Fortress to Kara. Kara had to do a retinal and handprint scan, but Kelex worked quick and in minutes, Clark was flying her back to Metropolis.

Flying into his apartment through the balcony, Clark set Kara down and told her to take a seat while he changed out of his suit.

Clark's apartment was small, but his mother had flown in to help him set it up. There was a kitchen to the left side of the front door. A small table with two bar stools. Kara stood in the living room, it had a large couch which was a sofa bed that Clark used whenever his parents visited, so he could give them his room, which was just a bed against a wall and a white wardrobe that acted as a partition between his bed and the living room. There was a door to Kara's left and in front of it was a small, tidy desk and she walked towards it to see the framed photographs Clark had hung on the wall. It was just him when he was a baby with Ma and Pa, another one of him when he was a teen and one of just Ma and Pa at the farm and finally one from his graduation where he stood hugging his mother.

Kara stood looking at the people in the pictures. They reminded her of her own parents. When the door on her left opened, she jumped in surprise.

"Sorry!" Clark called as he stepped out, he had changed out of his suit and now he wore a pair of jeans and a blue t-shirt. Kara moved closer to see the words that were written over his t-shirt.  _Star Wars._

She smiled at that and saw him look at her in surprise. "What is it?" Kara asked.

"You smiled," he stated. "You look good when you smile. You should do it more often."

Kara gave him a small nod and went to take a seat on the couch. "Is this your bedchamber?" she asked.

"You mean, my room? Oh, yeah. That bed  _is_  the room… This is home, Kara. This is all I could afford. Hold on, where are my manners?!" He rushed to the kitchen and pulled out a carton of orange juice from the fridge and poured her a glass. When he gave her the glass, she thanked him and gave him a small smile before taking a sip.

"This is good!" Kara exclaimed. "What is it?"

"A juice made from a local fruit." Clark grinned. "Okay, you must be hungry. I'll head out and come back very soon with some food. Why don't you take a nap?"

Kara didn't want to be left behind. There was fear in her eyes, of being abandoned again. Clark came to sit besides her. He placed his hand over hers and said, "I know you were sent here to look after me and to protect me in this alien world, but God had other plans for us. You can trust me, Kara. We are family, and I will always be there for you. Why don't you go to the bathroom and freshen up? Then take a nap. I'll be back soon."

Kara gave him a small nod. He then showed her the bathroom and told her he was going to use the front door this time so if anyone knocked on the door or rang the doorbell, she didn't have to open it. Kara could only nod as he spoke.

Once Clark was gone, Kara went to check out the bathroom. She washed her face and used the towel Clark had kept for her. Then she made her way to the bed and lay down. The whole journey from Krypton was exhausting. Twenty-two years weren't a joke. She scoffed and pulled the comforter over her and snuggled against the pillow. It smelt like Clark and it was oddly comforting.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, Clark was jogging down the street. There was a good Pizza place two blocks away and he knew Kara would love it as much as he did, so he decided to get two large plain cheese pies.

Once he had reached the place and ordered the pizzas, he pulled out his phone and called his mother.

"Clark, honey, I was wondering when you were going to call!"

"Hey Ma! Sorry, I was busy with work. Anyway, how does a little trip to Smallville sound?"

"You're coming home? We can't wait to see you!"

"Actually, I'm bringing someone along."

"Is it a girl?" Clark knew his mother was smiling as she asked that.

"Yeah. But not what you think. I can't talk about this here, Ma. But I'll drop by this weekend, how does that sound?"

"Excellent. We can't wait to see you, honey!"

"Miss you, Ma. I'll see you soon." Saying goodbye to his mother, he ended the call and waited to pick up his food. After that, he headed straight home and found Kara taking a nap on his bed.

He smiled looking at her. They were related by blood. He had finally met someone from Krypton who wasn't just a hologram or a droid.

Kara woke up when she felt another presence in the room. Her senses were sharper and she had too many questions for Clark.

"Food's here!" He opened the boxes and placed them on the kitchen table and took two plates out for them. "This is Pizza. You'll love it."

Kara waited for Clark to take a bite to see how it was eaten. She then took a small bite of her own pizza and her eyes widened at the plethora of flavors.

"This is really good, Kal!"

"Told you so!" Clark grinned as he digged into his food.

"I have a question," Kara said after she finished a slice of pizza. When she saw Clark nod, she asked, "Can everyone on this planet fly?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahh!! I just love Clark and Kara's bonding. We needed more of this in the show. And when I write Clark/Kal, I do NOT imagine Tyler Hoechlin. Henry Cavill will always be my Superman!
> 
> Are you liking the story? I hope you are! Do leave me a comment and kudos if you like what you read. :)

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked what you read, you can always leave a comment and kudos! :) Looking forward to what you think.


End file.
